Robert Iler, ‘The Sopranos’ AJ, Is Now The Same Age James Gandolfini Was When The Iconic HBO Drama Premiered In 1999

Where has the time gone? As The Sopranos celebrates 25 years since the iconic HBO series first premiered in 1999, fans may be surprised to learn that actor Robert Iler , known for playing Tony’s son AJ Soprano , is now 38, the same age James Gandolfini was when the show first aired. (We’re sorry if this revelation has you feeling particularly old.) Iler was around 12 years old when he first landed the role of Tony’s namesake (Anthony Jr., that is) and youngest child.

He has largely stayed out of the spotlight since the show concluded in 2007, but the actor has been open about how close he and the late Gandolfini were on set, often referring to him as a father figure. “I’ve probably not seen 80 percent of the episodes,” Iler said during a rare 2020 interview on the Talking Sopranos podcast, hosted by his former co stars Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirippa.

“[Gandolfini] met me when I was 12 … and it was very [much like a] father figure,” Iler said, before noting that it felt like “torture” to watch the late Gandolfini on screen. Iler also explained what he has been up to since the show ended in 2007, and his answer may surprise you. “The only thing I have done since Sopranos is I got called to do jury duty and I didn’t want to do jury duty … so twice, to get out of jury duty, I did an episode of Law and Order ,” he told his former co stars.

He also moved to Las Vegas to pursue a career as a professional poker player. He continued, “I still get calls randomly to do shows … and it’s like you played for the [New York] Yankees and now people are like, ‘Hey, do you want to do this thing?’ For me, I was extremely spoiled with my first thing.

It was perfect. So there is a part of me that thinks if you do something else, I will mess it up.” Instead, the actor has started a podcast titled Not Today, Pal with his on screen sister, Jamie Lynn Sigler , who played The Sopranos ‘s Meadow. Sigler has said that she believes Gandolfini would “love” that she and Iler remained close after the show.

Looking back on their time working together, Sigler revealed, “His main concern for Robert and I was always that we were okay financially, okay emotionally, and that we were happy.” The Sopranos is streaming in full on Max, which is also home to The Sopranos prequel film The Many Saints of Newark ..